Project Ethel

[DougsOBS]

Figured I would start a build thread to cover my 1993 F350 CC dually that has been lovingly named "Ethel".

I've been using and abusing my 3500 Dodge van as the main tow rig for the farm and race car habit. A replacement was definitely needed, so began the search for a more suitable rig. Kept my eye out for rust free crew cab and managed to find Ethel for sale on Craigslist. Was listed with a fuel leak and hard start. But rust free and the interior looked pretty decent. A pair of batteries, injector o-ring kit and some good luck I got her home.

To get through MD insection I needed to replace all the rubber brake lines, rear drums, steering box, pitman arm and tie rods. A few days later I noticed a bubble on one of the el-cheapo deluxe front tires the PO had installed so they were replaced. Oh and I discovered when the gooseneck was installed the trailer brake/ lighting was installed using a huge bag of splice taps and electrical tape. A new junkyard harness and all was better again.

Other than the initial repairs Ethel has had: New headlight housings, LED cab and maker lights, new Alpine radio, Pyrometer, Dome light, borla muffler and a good cleaning of the interior.

All this lead's to the next phase: moar powa!!

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[no mufflers]

So what are the power plans?

Not a bad looking truck. Looks like it sits higher in the second pic.

 

[DougsOBS]

Once I got it through inspection and was driving more often I noticed a more pronounced miss and smoke at idle. There was a full set of reman injectors local fs so I swapped those in. The old injectors were definitely toast and the smoke did reduce at idle but there was still a miss. Tracked down a fuel leak and air intrusion at the lift pump and fuel heater. Deleted the heater and put a new faucet lift pump on. Truck ran better than ever but still had a miss. DrI've like that for a while but felt the injection pump was failing.

Turns out Mel isn't that far away from me and the decision was made. Limped the truck up to him and had a Moose JR pump. His customer service was amazing and well worth the trip. He found a few more little issues that he dealt with during the install and informed me my injection pump was bad. He also let me know my reman injectors weren't helping my miss at idle. Even so the install went forward and all I can say is WOW! The Moose Jr woke old Ethel up more than I could have ever imagined. So now I'm saving up some pennies to get a set of quality injectors to finish ironing out the engine.

Stay tuned. There is much more in store for Project Ethel! Planning on a turbo setup by winter and doing a built trans at the same time.

 

[DougsOBS]

Yea in the first picture that tank was full of water haha. Just a little weight in the bed.

 

[Macrobb]

Yes, it's amazing what a good set of injectors and a decent pump will do for *any* IDI.

 

[pafixitman]

Welcome to the board. Mel is a class act. Sounds like you are in north east MD area? There are a few of us around this state.

 

[DougsOBS]

I'm south of Annapolis MD. But I'm in Lancaster/Harrisburg often for work.

 

[DougsOBS]

So my fuel pickups are both broken off in the tanks. Since I'm dropping the tanks I'm going to replace the rear with the 38gal one. I'll post some pictures when the tank comes in.

 

[pafixitman]

I'm south of Annapolis MD. But I'm in Lancaster/Harrisburg often for work.

Not a hateful distance away. Once the weather breaks, we try to do some "mini meets". Jimmy Cone in Mt. Airy is a popular one.

 

[DougsOBS]

38 Gal tank is here, any suggestions on what to paint it with? Also any tips on doing that job with the bed on? Its a PIA to take the gooseneck hitch off

 

[DougsOBS]

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Well that would explain my running light issue.

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I was able to swap the pins over on all but 2 of the wires. Soldered the others on and retaped the harness.

 

[79jasper]

Well yeah. Lol

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk

 

[hesutton]

38 Gal tank is here, any suggestions on what to paint it with? Also any tips on doing that job with the bed on? Its a PIA to take the gooseneck hitch off

The 38 gallon I got was painted grey/silver, so I didn't paint it. There isn't really an easy way to do this with the bed on. I had to bust all the bed bolts loose, bust loose the fifth wheel rail bolts, and put the bed on wooden blocks to have the room. I love having double tank capacity in the rear though. Only down side is at the pump. Rarely can I fill both tanks and not have to put my card in again. Most places have a $100 limit at the auto pumps. That's never an issue at commercial pumps (truck stops and such).

Sucks about the fried wiring. I've been down that road before. What a PITA.

Heath

 

[hesutton]

Oh, don't let the sending units mods worry you. They aren't bad.

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Heath

 

[pafixitman]

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Well that would explain my running light issue.

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I was able to swap the pins over on all but 2 of the wires. Soldered the others on and retaped the harness.

Been there, done that. The good ol crispy brown wire.